Lodi vet killed by cops had record

LODI - A Lodi man who was shot and killed by police on Jan. 25 has in his past been accused, but not convicted, of violent criminal threats and carrying a concealed weapon, court documents reveal.

Keith Reid

LODI - A Lodi man who was shot and killed by police on Jan. 25 has in his past been accused, but not convicted, of violent criminal threats and carrying a concealed weapon, court documents reveal.

Parminder Singh Shergill, 43, was shot and killed by two Lodi police officers on Jan. 25. The Lodi Police Department has said Shergill, a Gulf War veteran who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, charged at the officers with a knife, which resulted in the shooting.

Shergill's family and civil rights attorney Mark Merin say Shergill was never violent and that officers shot him without cause. Merin held a news conference on the steps of the U.S. Eastern District Court on Thursday to announce a federal civil rights lawsuit claiming excessive force, negligence and lack of training for officers in dealing with mental health patients, among other claims.

Witness accounts indicate that Shergill might not have had a knife in his hand when officers shot him. Other witness accounts say a knife was found at the scene and that Shergill took four steps at officers before they shot him.

Little has been revealed by the family or police about Shergill's past in regards to how police handled at least three other calls for help getting him to mental health facilities.

San Joaquin County Superior Court documents show that Shergill was arrested in November 2006 for threatening to kill ex-wife Neelan Dhesi, public intoxication and for having a concealed weapon in his vehicle.

Shergill was never convicted. His cases went to San Joaquin County Superior Court and were later dismissed. He was referred to mental health services.

Dhesi refused a Record interview request when contacted at her home in Illinois.

Lodi Police Chief Mark Helms said the department "is obviously aware of (the 2006 accusations) and other things." He said the department is preparing to release further information that will dispute Merin's characterization of Shergill as having never displayed violent behavior.

"We've been trying to be very respectful to Mr. Shergill's family, because we didn't want to tarnish his name and release any information prematurely," Helms said. "Our message all along is that our investigation is running its course, just like any other officer-involved shooting.

"Unfortunately, (Shergill) was not the peaceful man he has been represented to be," Helms added.

Merin said Thursday that Shergill was "gentle, kind ... never violent" but that he would occasionally experience "episodes" where he would hear voices and behave in ways that his family could not handle without help. When that occurred, the family would call police and request they transport Shergill to mental health services at the Veterans Affairs clinic.

On Jan. 25, Shergill's sister-in-law, Kuldeep Shergill, called 911 because her brother-in-law was having such an "episode."

Shergill's sister, Kulbinder Sahota, told The Record on Thursday that her brother had never been arrested for behavior related to his mental health issues.

Merin maintained Friday that Shergill was never a violent person and said the 2006 allegations were nothing more than accusations.

"An accusation is just an accusation. One cannot impute any truth to an accusation," Merin said. "A person is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and there was no conviction on that allegation."

Merin said Thursday that part of the reason the Shergill family has filed a federal lawsuit against Lodi, Helms and the involved officers is for the search for answers into how the Jan. 25 shooting occurred. He said the family has waited two months and hasn't received an autopsy report or access to interview the involved officers.

Helms said four agencies are involved in the process of completing its report. Lodi police are still waiting to receive reports from the Department of Justice and the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office before turning those over to the district attorney.

"We will submit a full report to the district attorney when it's complete," he said. "We don't release little pieces at a time."

The lawsuit also requests unspecified monetary damages, court and lawyer fees, and for Helms and the involved officers to be reprimanded.

Contact reporter Keith Reid at (209) 546-8257 or kreid@recordnet.com. Follow him at recordnet.com/edublog and on Twitter @KReidme.